I was driving down the road a couple weeks ago, headed somewhere. All I can remember is the driving and thinking I did during that 20 minutes. My second year of college had begun, work was stressful, my personal calendar was overwhelming, my quiet time seemed nonexistent and my bedroom hadn't been cleaned in weeks (I'm being honest here). I stared out the window at the road ahead, wondering why I felt different, why I felt guilty, why I felt sad. I couldn't figure it out. I drove a couple more miles, turned the volume up & just listened to the music surround me. And then, it hit me, I felt neglect, not neglected, just neglect. I began to think of everything and everyone I had neglected... my bible study, my bedroom, my parents & brother, my school work, my website/blog {hence the reason it's been months since I last wrote something}, my me-time, and my God. yes, you read correctly. I had neglected God, and thankfully I arrived at my destination - which was Dos Amigos to have lunch with my Grandmother as I now recall - because I felt absolutely nauseous. I sat in the parking lot and began pouring my heart out to God, trying to find the reason why I had put Him on the back burner, and realizing that was the reason everything else seemed off in my life. I quietly sat there, out of breath & out of words, as the music played. That's where the neglect left me: in the Dos Amigos parking lot, out of breath and out of words, feeling sick to my stomach with nowhere but inside to go. The next hour was great yet painful. Lunch was great & the company was greater, but I could not get back to my car fast enough. I needed to finish what I had started. 10 mins later, I was pulling into my driveway after having a hard conversation with God, where He kindly reminded me that neglect was not of Him, in fact, He commands his people not to be negligent in 2 Chronicles 29:11. Hezekiah, began reigning as King of Israel at the age of twenty-five. The Bible says that what he did was "right in the eyes of the Lord". Is there anything more to wish for? Hezekiah had seen his forefather neglect the temple, and bring uncleanliness and unfaithfulness into the lives of the Israelites. He commanded the Levites to consecrate themselves and the temple, restoring it to its proper order, removing all that had made it dirty in the sight of the Lord. He encouraged them with these words: "My sons, do not be negligent and careless now, for the LORD has chosen you to stand in His presence, to attend to His service, and to be His ministers and burn incense" (AMP). And they did exactly as King Hezekiah commanded them. The temple was restored and worship quickly began again. What would have happened in the Levites would have neglected the call to restore the temple and worship? Would they have missed standing in His presence? Could they have missed being part of His service? Could they have missed the opportunity to minister to others? Would they have missed the chance to make a sweet aroma unto the Lord (2 Corinthians 2:15)? This left me broken, sorry and guilty. I had first, and foremost neglected God by not staying in His Word and living it out - Which caused me to neglect my family & friends, my school work, the passion to serve others {in and out of the restaurant}, to neglect my health and need of rest, both physically & spiritually. So tonight, I write this for you, and for me. To remind me of where I've been and where I am now. Back on track - spending quality time with God, loving and listening more to my family and friends, getting a good night's rest, making healthy decisions, and keeping my room [somewhat] clean...come on, I'm trying...haha. Anyways, now that the night has turned to morning and my my heart is not too heavy to share, I hope that this encourages someone, to rise from where your neglect has left you, and pursue watchfulness and respect for God and all that He has done for you, what He is doing in your life now, and what He has in store for He next chapter of your life - standing in His presence, serving Him and others, creating a sweet aroma unto Him. Abby tell me NOTE TO AUDIENCE: I am SO SORRY that it has been months since my last blog post. There are no excuses except that there have been A LOT of things going on. I'll do my best to be better at this! Enjoy this special blog! this blog goes out to all my fellow waitresses, and co-workers...an appreciation for the job. Let me say that I do understand this is not the toughest or worst job out there, and it's not the best either and that's perfectly fine, for me. 💚 I love my job, and my co-workers, and my customers...it's not always been a piece of cake and HWY 55 has had its ups and downs, but it has helped mold me into the young lady I am today...so here it goes... 1. There are many different people in the world! I've waitressed now for 2 years, not to mention it's my first job. Anyways, through the past two years, I've seen MANY different people come through the doors, and each time, I try to yell "Hey, Welcome to Hwy 55, have a seat wherever you'd like." and almost every time, the customers don't understand or hear me. That's the first group of people, the busy ones, just looking for a table. Second group: big parties with that one person who thinks they know how to seat their family/friends and take care of the party better than you could. I'm fine with giving your input, but I'm also the one who has done this a million times before, and know how to make this the quickest and most efficient dining experience for your large group. So a lot of different people: sad, happy, families of 4, businessmen/women, Wal-Mart employees, truckers, veterans, teenagers, and a lot of others. 2. A smile can change someone's entire day. I don't know how many people have told myself or my boss, how happy it made them feel when I or another waitress approached the table with a smile. Granted, I don't want to smile for my entire shift cause that just isn't going to happen: your orders might be taking a while, the custard machine is being annoying again, someone's upset and waving you down, the clock hasn't change since the last time you checked it (which was 5 mins. ago), and the pile of dishes are growing by the second. But smiles and laughter are contagious, so just take a second and smile at the customer, and if they don't smile back, try again next time you come back to the table. I've had a regular grntleman tell me today how pretty my smile was, and how happy he felt walking into the store, seeing my smile, and knowing I knew exactly why he was there. You see, his wife in in a home with disabilities and an illness, but she loves chocolate milkshakes, so every week, he comes in and has us split a milkshake into two cups, one for this afternoon, and the other for whenever his wife wants it from the freezer. At first , this man was just another customer, but now, he's one of my favorites, and I always look forward to him coming in so I can smile his way and share his sadness and loneliness with him for just a few minutes. 3. I CAN multitask, and I'm pretty good at it. Yes, I'll grab that tea for the guy at the bar, and the lemons for table 2, the fork and knife for the little lady at table 32, and you can't forget the dish water running in the back-the hot fudge is warming up, somethings burning- okay, Abby, lemons, DONT FORGET THE LEMONS! And luckily I rescued the hot fudge, the dish water didn't flood the kitchen, the lady got the knife and fork, the man at the bar enjoyed watching me run around like a madwoman (he got his tea last) and the lemons made it to table 32 right on time. Multitasking has been something I have learned to do EVERYWHERE. Yes, I'm gonna forget something and probably bring the ring thing to the wrong table, but 95% of the time, I'm spot on. 4. You can't please everyone. There will always be that one table, or customer who, no matter how hard you work for them and how great my service may be, they will still leave looking sad and angry at their dining experience. The tea will be too sweet, the music will be too loud, the fries won't be crispy enough, and there's probably too much mustard on your bun. I always try to do my best for my customers, and most of the time, "my best" pays off, but then sometimes it doesn't. 5. Your 'voice' matters. At my job, the voice matters. The way you greet the customers at the door, should be loud, welcoming and exciting. [yet, no matter how loud I yell "have a seat wherever you'd like", people still stand at the door clueless.] When I'm talking to the little lady at 33 who always orders the same meal, I can't speak softly due to the screaming baby behind her, and the fifties music overhead, or she won't hear me. And don't think I have forgotten how loud the friers, and grill are. When I am on the cook line, it's almost impossible for me to here a waitress on the floor or in the back, it's just too loud, so I have to be loud (which isn't a problem). On the other hand, as a manager, my tone of voice when talking to customers has to be friendly, inviting, and confident. And when I'm talking to my waitresses, I have to be kind, respectful yet firm in our conversations. Lastly, my voice and my conversation with my customers, could be the kindest and happiest voice they hear, so why wouldn't I want to make it the best? I've learned many other things that I can share at a later time but these are just a few things that have popped into my mind over the past few months. And if this topic isn't for you, come back soon, I've got another post pending 😉 For the past few days, I have started two blogs just to quit and save them to my draft file a few minutes later; I didn't feel like they were good enough or the one I wanted to post in that moment. But that all changed this morning, when my family and I braved the forecasted weather and headed to the beach. I have never heard or felt so much wind; the waters were so rough no one could get in. The sand was blowing everywhere, and we had to pack up our tent so it didn't blow away. There was a mist blowing off the sea, and gray clouds began to gather across the sky and in that moment, God reminded me of the story in Mark 4, where Jesus and his disciples got in a boat and started traveling to the other side of the area. A great, fierce storm came about and made the waves big, and the wind strong. The disciples, with no faith, were sure the boat would sink. Jesus was resting in another part of the boat during the storm. Some disciples ran to him and said 'Lord, do you not care that we are about to drown?' Jesus went to the middle of the boat, and commanded the winds to die down, the waves to calm, the rain to cease, and the storm to blow away. And there stood the disciples in awe of what their Master had just done. He asked them why they were so afraid? Had they not seen what He had done in the past? [Read the true story for yourself - https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%204:35-41&version=MSG ] Let's take one more look at that last line... Had they not seen what He had done in the past? Boy, did that hit me hard. As I stood there on the beach, playing Bache Ball with my dad, brother and uncle, I couldn't help but stare into the sea and watch as the waves crashed onto the shore, and it's background grew darker and darker. I tried to capture this beautiful and overwhelming scene in the picture below but you just had to be there. All afternoon I have been thinking about the disciples in the boat during the storm and how this wasn't the first miracle they had seen Jesus perform. My dad has reminded myself and our church of that as he's been preaching through the book of Mark in the Bible, the disciples just didn't get it..(you should check out this sermon after you finish reading my blog - http://oxfordbaptist.com/content.cfm?id=213&download_id=72 )
After thinking about what Jesus had done for the disciples and how they had witnessed many other great things before that, I started thinking about the storms in my life and how I was just like the disciples, no faith that Jesus could bring me through and that I'd make it to the other side. Let me let you in on a small storm that is present in my life. If you know me, this might sound crazy, but I am really nervous about starting college in a few weeks. New teachers, new classmates, bigger classrooms and bigger subjects. This has probably hit other college freshmen, I'm sure and if you are one of them, you may know how I feel. On top of that, I am still unsure of what God wants me to be, where he wants me to go, what he wants me to do. So taking these classes, and trying to plan for after college is kind of stressing me out. Those are the two biggest and darkest clouds in my storm. Jesus calmed the storm that day on the Sea of Galilee; Why am I not sure that He can calm my storm today? So after spending some time reflecting over my faith and trust in God, and being content sometimes in the pit of knowing God is faithful but not trusting Him to be faithful in my "storm", I have asked for forgiveness and help trusting Him more and more everyday. It's not everyday that we are physically reminded of Jesus' power and faithfulness, but I am very thankful I was today. Before you start judging or looking at me, the pastor's daughter, for not trusting God to calm my storm and bring me to the other side, please think about the storms of your life and if you are, like me and the disciples, having no faith in the Creator of the storms. In the end, none of us are perfect, and there will always be storms in our lives that will scare us, but would it not be great to walk through or 'sail' through the storms of life, with compete faith that Jesus already knows what the other side of the storm looks like, and we can rest (like Jesus did that night in the boat) knowing we can make it to the other side. So whatever your storm consists of, whether going back to school, entering college, work relationships, family or friend issues, know that your storm will never be too big for our God. Have faith...take some time to talk with God about the storms of your life, I promise He knows what you need. Abby Anyone know where my title comes from? Does the 'Sound of Music' ring a bell? Haha. That's one of my favorite movies or plays. Today's blog is nothing special or deep but just a list of some of my favorite things...so here we go. 1. I like Strawberry Lemonade frozen drinks from McDonalds or O'Charleys. 🍓🍋 2. I love SourPatch watermelons! Yum! 🍉 3. I like being organized and planned out. Like the whole nine yards- different colored pens, a notebook with a few sections, a calendar and everything. 📂🗓🖍🖋 4. I like purses, no wait, I LOVE purses 😍 (maybe I'll do a blog on my favorite purses sometime, haha) 5. I like jewelry. I just recently got like very into jewelry but it has to be simple and nothing big. 😉 6. I like to play games. If there is a couple of minutes where nothing's going on, either with family or friends, I'm trying to find or think of a game that we can play. 🤔😌 7. I like music, a lot! I love to have my headphones in, and the radio up, and if there isn't music in my ears or on the radio, chance is, I'm making my own. 🎧🎵 8. Speaking of music, I have a variety of favorite songs, genres and artist, so here's a little taste of my library: Contemporary Christian(K-Love artists), Country (not all, but some), Southern Gospel (Gaither Vocal Band😍, Wes Hampton, Marshall Hall, The Nelons, anything Crabb family related, 11th Hour), One Direction (I know that may be totally four years ago but still😊) Bruno Mars-Just The Way You Are, Miley Cyrus-The Climb, The McRaes-He Knows My Name, Rascal Flatts-Changed...there are a few more😉 9. Just because these next two favorites are towards the bottom of the list, doesn't mean they aren't my top favorites; They just deserve a lot of time & I knew I'd lose you if I started with two long paragraphs. I love to worship. And it's hard for me even to describe my love for standing with other Christians, raising my hands before an Almighty God and singing my praise in efforts to show Him just how worthy He is and how much I love Him. 🙌🏻 10. I love kids- babysitting, nursery, Kid's Church, Kidz Khoir, pre-K-5th grade. I just like being with kids and hearing their comments and conversations, and seeing them getting super excited over the little things. I love walking into church and school, and getting stopped by five or six kids, receiving hugs, and drawings, or a piece of gum, and just seeing the smile on their face when a "big kid" stops to take time and hear about there week. 😃 11. I love spending time with my friends and family! 12. I love my job. And yes, it has its up and downs and it hasn't been a piece of cake but I love it, and the people I get to interact with. What are your favorite things?? 😊 till next time, Abby I'M SINGLE & I'VE NEVER HAD A BOYFRIEND - I'M PERFECTLY OKAY.Let me start out by saying I have wanted to share about this topic for a long time but haven't had the confidence or words to do so until now.
I am eighteen years old, yes, eighteen, and have never, I repeat, never had a boyfriend. Majority of girls my age have had at least 1-2 boyfriends over their high school career. And when I refer to a 'boyfriend', I mean someone around your age that you can actually go out on a date with, and actually talk about stuff, and confide in each other with...not a boyfriend from 5th or 6th grade that you only saw at school... I have recently become more and more satisfied or content with being single. [Don't get me wrong, I want a boyfriend- someone I can take cute pictures with, someone that wants to hang out with me, or my friends and family, someone who can put up with me making a mess while I demolish a few teriyaki wings at BWW, a man that can hang with my dad, brother, uncles and grandfathers in the topics of fishing, sports, and politics, someone who loves God and enjoys serving and worshipping Him just as much as I do. Is that too much to ask for? Maybe, but I don't thinks it's too much to pray for. ] There was a short period of time during high school where I was jealous and maybe bitter of girls who had a boyfriend, or who were "talking" to someone...I was quite honestly ready to unfollow them, or cut our conversations in half, but I didn't. I was reminded by my Heavenly Father, and other close friends and relatives that a "significant other" does not define you, and these pivotal years in my life are and have been easier and selfishly better without having a 'boyfriend'. So I've been taking time to pray for my future husband, and asking God to polish me up and make me the woman he wants me to be-I don't want to dive into a relationship of "us" and "we" without knowing "me" or "I". I don't even like to use the term [boyfriend], because I feel like in today's world, a boyfriend isn't someone you date with the intention of marrying or a man with whom you do life with seriously looking to the future, but someone who girls only have for a short period of time because that's what peer pressure, Hollywood and social media has told us the standard is... I hope you get what I'm trying to say. Something came to my attention the other day about chasing a man who is chasing God before he starts chasing me & dancing with God until he lets the right man cut in. Those sentences may sound cheesy or irrevelant to you, but to me and some other young ladies around the world, those are important words! So that has been my personal challenge, to be so intuned and inlove with God that I only see the one guy God has created for me. So as I try to wrap up all these thoughts, I want to challenge you, whether you're single or whether you've dated a few guys, that you ask God to show you who and what he has designated for this certain time in your life, and if you need to take some time and find more of God before you find another guy, do so. And if you have a special someone in your life, that you cherish them, and pray for them daily- congrats! Until next time... Here's a special insight into life as a Pastor's Daughter from a very sweet friend!
One thing that I struggled with as a PK, was identity. To a lot of people, I was “The Preacher’s Daughter”. Which is okay, but that title became my identity, which, if I was not careful, it could have become a purpose that I sought after. I went to a public school, and most of the kids there knew that I was the preacher’s daughter. So, if the kids would say a curse word, they would ask me to forgive them. If they were going to tell a joke or discuss something that wouldn’t be “appropriate” they would normally leave me out of the group. This used to bother me. Until I began to realize, it was really okay. PK’s struggle with identity because EVERYONE has their version of YOU that they think you should be. Some people like to keep you under a microscope. If you do one little thing wrong, those carnal gossipers go to town. They are just waiting for something to happen so that their boring life can be interfered by your mistakes. Shame on them, if anyone has hurt you in this way. There are also some people that tend to be awkward around you, because they think you are this different kind of human because you are a PK. Maybe they draw a picture of a cross for you or share Christian stuff on pinterest with you because you’re a PK. They are glad that you are the girl that could be deemed the driver on party night, but they don’t want anything to do with your religion. Then, we have the Debbie Downers who let you know “What happens to all the PK’s when they grow up”. I specifically had 1 kid in my class, who reminded me often that I would probably turn into some kind of crazy partier in an effort to abandon my stranded tower like repunzel or something. Bless their heart. (; LOL Proud to say, that did not happen to me. Here’s the dealeo. Yes, we are Preacher’s Daughters. No, we are not perfect. We, like everyone else, have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. No, I will not win every sword drill in Sunday School. No, I do not have all of the answers to your Bible theology questions. Yes, I understand that there are many little girls in my church and family who are watching me. This is part of my motivation to be the girl God wants me to be. Yes, I chose Christ for me. Not because my parents MADE me. But because I wanted to! Yes, I have been raised in a house of respect, where we honor something called rules. Yes, I know all of the veggie tale songs and songs from “Now That’s What I call Worship CD 2003”. I am a Preacher’s Daughter. I am fulfilling a purpose given to me by God. I know my identity is found in Christ. Not my earthly father, nor by my peers, nor by the congregation of my church. Because I know who I am in Christ, I know what I need to do. No, I am most definitely not perfect. Yes, I have made mistakes and that is okay. God has much more grace for me than I could ever deserve. Yes, I love my church family because they are MY FAMILY. Don’t mess with them. Or you will be rebuked in Jesus’ name! I hope this has been an encouragement to you! Much Love, Fayth <3 Hey Y’all , My name is Fayth lore. I am from Southern Ohio. That is right across from KY. We are at the very bottom of the heart of OH! I am 20 years old. I am an online student, studying business management through Ohio Christian University. My family travels in full-time ministry, spreading the gospel through songs, sermons and seminars. We go by The Lore Family. We sing an inter-generational variety of music, but we do mostly southern gospel songs. If you would like to know more about my family visit our website at www.thelorefamilyministries.com . You can also find our music on Youtube and Itunes. (= I am also a blogger and I love encouraging young women in Christ’s name! Visit www.truepurposegirls.weebly.com to read more about my ministry. Something else about me… I am a PK. I am a preacher’s kid. I am a Preacher’s Daughter! So, for all of the Preacher’s Daughter’s out there, this post is FOR YOU!!! My Dad has Pastored for 20 years. Up until January of 2014, my Dad was the only Pastor I had ever had. It was then that God began calling our family to launch into a more evangelical type of ministry, specifically in music. I LOVED being a PK. The church was my comfort zone. The congregation became my family. 7th Street CBC was where my walk with Christ first began. Certain ladies in the church would bake special cookies for the Pastor’s family. On Pastor appreciation day, I got like $10! It was great! Every year on my birthday, Sister Willis would find my some type of notebook, angel or other doo-dad that had “faith” engraved on it. She would be so excited to have found something with “my name” on it. Even though my name is spelled FA –Y- TH. It’s the thought that counts anyway. Wow, I have a lot to learn about commitment and loyalty, because I sure haven't learned anything about keeping a website updated. I apologize for saying "sorry" over and over, but I do want to say that it may or may not get any better. I'm just being honest; I kind of feel like a failure.
But, as I was reminded today, faliure is the lack of success. Success, in the world's eyes, is the accomplishment of an aim or goal, the attainment of popularity or profit. I feel like a failure with no chance of success. But I just graduated high school, I have a full time job that I love, I have a great family and close friends. I have what most people would call success, and I agree. I think God has a different plan of success for my life. I don't need a lot of money, a fancy car, or big house. I need to fail at something to learn a lesson. I need to lose something so I know how hard to work to get it again. I need to be at the bottom so I appreciate the feeing of being on top. I have enjoyed most every minute of the past few months pushing me to success but I know I can't stay here long, hard times are coming and I may feel like a failure. God has reminded me to "count it all joy" because he "works all things together for the good of those who love the Lord". I am am not a failure. I am a successful failure. And that's all there is for now..I'm working out the failure (of this website) Can you tell when your life gets too complex?Hey guys! So yes, I know it's been a while and I'm not even going to apologize like the previous two times, I'll just hope you keep reading... You can probably tell what this blog is going to be about and if your life is the least bit confusing, you will probably keep reading anyways. I am going to write below, an excerpt from a bible study book my youth director taught from Wednesday night that has stuck with me since then..
so I realize that it's been a very long time since I've wrote, and I apologize for that, but please understand my purpose is exactly the title above. I, like some of you, am at a very crucial, growing time in my life. I graduate in five months, turn 18 soon, and make college and job decisions all in the same time. And after my last post, I felt like I needed to regroup, focus on God, my family & friends, school, church, and finding/following God's will for my life.
I'll be honest, life got busy and I ran out of time..but I thought about you, and others that visits my page and read my blog, and I was disappointed in myself for not finding time for this. So there I was not focused on the website, not really focused on school and exams, focused on what others were saying or thinking, and not really focused on what I should be. So I took some time to dig deep into my life, wants & desires, and then to dive into the Word of God to find renewal, and to prioritize my life around what He says is important..and here's a quick snap of what I've gathered in my personal life... no boys until I'm completely in love with God, working hard to Glorify God in my school work, part-time job, and service positions elsewhere; trying a completely different way of devotions and bible time; and to simply obey God, and He will grant me the desires of my 💜. So there you have it..focus one God, and then on yourself in a positive, unselfish way, to grow and mature. Now for some fun and insight to my busy life..pictures below. can I just state how scared I am of crickets, grasshoppers, spiders, and any insect that moves. And can I say that I get scared when I'm in a small room with lots of people? Okay, and then I get scared when I drive home at night by myself and I have this sudden fear that I've left something at home that I really need either for church, work, school or basketball whenever I leave my house. And last but not least, I am scared of heights...and today I had to climb up on a scaffold, stand on some wood and paint a backboard while holding onto the not-so-sturdy rim. Ahhh, I almost died, well, not really but I felt like it.
Then, it hit me while I was up there painting that God has NOT given us a spirit of fear, BUT of power, love and a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7). And the conviction of not trusting God today on that scaffold has stayed with me all evening. And just driving home, I had to keep reminding myself that God was with me the whole time..oh and then, the grasshopper that just hopped past my feet in the garage, yes, thank you Lord for reminding me yet again, that you put that critter there to remind me You are in control. You know sometimes we all need to be reminded that Gos is in control, and He is powerful, omniscient, omnipotent, loving, ALIVE and working. The Bible doesn't say Do Not Fear 365 times for us to ignore it and continue to let Satan scare us..having fears and overcoming them make us stronger; it grows us. Maybe you have a fear of the future or of what will happen tomorrow, or what will happen to your family and friends....stop, take a deep breath..were you scared to take it? No, because you have faith that your life matters to the Lord, well why are we (me included) scared of the small things like grasshoppers, the dark, heights, snakes?? Isn't your breath more important than that grasshopper? Next time, you get scared, try to remember that God is with you and hasn't given you that "spirit of fear".. He wants us to trust Him with those fears like we trust Him with our next breath. Abby |
Author20 year-old experiencing the ups & downs of life with the Creator & Sustainer of the World Archives
October 2017
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